No Rest for the Innocent
by Atrumfides
Summary: Three children, thrown together by unknown forces, but for what purpose? At first they stand alone, then they stand as one, but will it be enough? Will they, by themselves, have the strength to stop Armageddon? Will the bonds they forge be enough?


**AN:** Heya folks! It's been a long hard ride, but finally No Rest for the Innocent, co-written with the author of Black Flames Dance in the Wind: Rise of Naruto, DevilKeys Writing is truly ready to be posted and enjoyed!

To those curious why this story may have made a repost...well, we fucked up. We were eager to get the story out, and made quite a few mistakes. Going back over it, we saw, and recognized these, and chose to fix them in a repost. So here we go, take two!

Summary: Three children, thrown together by unknown forces, but for what purpose? Were they drawn to each other by the natural bond formed by the outcasts of the world? Were they put together by fate? Destiny? Or is there something more sinister at play? At first they stand alone, then they stand as one, but will it be enough? Will they, by themselves, have the strength to stop Armageddon? Or will they require the help of others? Will the bonds that they forge be enough to help them stand against the greatest force the world has ever known?

Atrumfides and Co-author Devilkeys Writing (Black Flames Dance In The Wind: Rise of Naruto) invite you to follow these three through their lives, wherein lies the trials and tribulations, the likes of which no child should ever be subjected, that seem to wait for them around every corner.

While the guilty lay in their beds, content with their malicious deeds, it is the victims that are made to lay awake at night, and pay the most severe penalties for the acts of the wicked; for there is No Rest for the Innocent...

In the relatively peaceful village of Amegakure no Sato, a young girl smacked her blaring alarm clock into the far wall of her room. She rolled over, smiling contently at her regained peace and quiet. This was short-lived, however, as she soon heard the light thumps of her twin sister running down the hall and stopping at the door to her room.

"Nee-chaaaan..." a child's voice called out happily as the door swung open.

The young girl mumbled something incoherent and rolled over in her bed.

"Nee-chaaaan..." the voice seemed to be closer, louder than before.

The girl pulled the bed sheets tighter around her head to block out the sound.

"Nii-chan, she's not getting up!" the shuffling of small feet was heard and a little girl's voice whined.

A distinctly masculine voice, perhaps a teenager's, carried an undertone of amusement as it rang out.

"Yeah, so I see. Don't worry, Kiyo-chan, I'll wake her for you!"

"Yay!" the small girl cheered.

The shuffling was heard again, but this time it was led by the heavy footfalls of someone much larger than the little girl.

"Hey, Yu-chan, wake up." a large hand gripped the sleeping girl's shoulder and shook her. "Kiyo-chan's been calling you for the past half hour."

The girl mumbled something and tried to shrug the hand off.

"Hm? What was that?"

"...I dun...wanna geddup..." the girl mumbled a bit louder this time.

"Is that so? Well, I guess you'll miss your first day at the academy, then."

A hand came out from under the sheets and waved the teen off, then went back under. Seconds later a young girl, around six years of age, sprang up from the bed. Her long black hair in disarray and odd marks on her face from creases in her pillowcase.

"WHAT?! Why didn't you tell me sooner?!" the girl looked at the digital alarm clock and saw that she only had twelve minutes to get ready and get to the academy for orientation.

The only things Kiyoko and Kinta registered were the black and purple blurs darting from room to room.

Kinta scratched his head. 'Damn, not even an academy student, yet, and she's already that fast?!' the Jounin shook his head.

(Five Minutes Later)

Yushi Hantai stood in front of her older brother, staring up at him with her vibrant grey eyes, silently begging him for something.

Kinta Hantai looked down at the girl, steeled his resolve, and shook his head.

"No. You have to learn to be more responsible! If you hadda' woken up on your own, you coulda' been early! But now you'll be late, and on your first day, at that! I doubt that's going to make a good impression on the instructors." he rubbed his nose and smirked. "But, you know what? That may work out great in the end, since you're gonna need to work harder to impress them."

Yushi just continued to stare up at him, her eyes tearing up slightly. "....Please?" she whimpered.

Kinta made the mistake of looking down. Once he did that, eye contact was unavoidable, and he was trapped in something that could only be some kind of genjutsu, for no one had eyes that big and cute.

"No...Must...Resist....Puppy...Eyes...Oh, damn it all to hell! Fine," he turned his back to her and knelt down, "hop on before I change my mind."

Yushi cheered and climbed onto her brother's back.

Kiyoko Hantai ran up to them to see them off. "Have fun at the academy, Nee-chan!" Yushi's twin sister said enthusiastically.

Yushi's expression suddenly grew serious. "I'm not going to have fun, Kiyo-nee, I'm going to become a kunoichi." Kinta had to grin at that. She was finally taking things seriously! His happiness was short-lived, as Yushi shouted back as he took off, "I'll prank the instructor in your name!" Kinta nearly smashed face-first into a building.

Kiyoko laughed as she waved, waving to them until they were out of sight, though she really couldn't tell. She always had her eyes closed, even when she walked. If they were ever opened, they'd reveal cloudy grey eyes, almost like her sister's. But these eyes were clouded for a reason. Kiyoko was blind.

It had happened three years ago, when they were both three and Kinta was fourteen and had just made Chuunin. It was a freak accident. A flash bomb had rolled off the cart of a merchant who was selling assorted ninja wares and gear. The bomb, most likely having been made in a slipshod manner, must have been unstable, for it went off as soon as it hit the ground.

Kiyoko had seen the bomb and was about to warn the merchant that it had fallen, but it exploded as she was looking at it, instantly burning away her corneas and cursing her to a world of eternal darkness.

A freak accident, that's all it had been...a freak accident. Something that happened once in every million times a flash bomb fell from a cart.

"An accident..." Kiyoko sat down at the kitchen table of the two story home she lived in with her family.

There was something about that day. Something was off about it from the very beginning. And the so called "accident" was believed to be a farce by Yushi. She swore that she saw something behind the cart when the bomb fell. Yushi says it's the only reason she wasn't watching it fall like Kiyoko was.

Yushi said there was a slight distortion in the air next to the cart before it happened, and that it suddenly..._moved_ when the bomb fell...no, when the bomb was _knocked over_. This was no accident, according Yushi, it was a trap, probably meant for Kinta.

Yushi told them this, day in and day out. Every time it was brought up, she would correct anyone that called it an accident. She would always urge Kinta to look for the culprit and bring him/her to justice, but he would just wave her off and say she was overreacting. It was at these times Yushi would scream about Kinta not caring about them, and would lock herself in her room for hours on end.

Yushi may have thought she was the only one that believed the event to have been a trap, but, in reality, she knew the least about the incident out of the three of them.

Kinta knew it had been set up, but he also thought it was meant for him. He figured it was the same people who had killed their parents coming back to finish the job. This was his reason for rising through the ranks so quickly. His drive came from his desire to protect what remained of his family from the assassins that took their parents. For this reason he had also become quite proficient in seals, and used barrier seals all around the house, outside and inside of every room, that could be activated by the blood of either himself or a close relative. Just in case a fight ever broke out inside or near their home, the girls would at least be safe until back-up arrived.

Kiyoko, the victim herself, knew more about the event than both her sister and brother combined. You see, she was the sister who wished to become a kunoichi in the first place. When she was rendered blind by the "accident", she gave up on that career choice, and Yushi took it, vowing to become the best for her crippled sister.

Kiyoko knew it wasn't an accident. She knew why it was done, and who did it. While she could never, and would never, see the face of the one who took her eyesight away, she knew who it was. After it happened, a strange voice manifested within her head. It was the reason she could move around without bumping into anything. The voice acted as her eyes, telling her where to go and when to move to avoid something.

She knew the owner of the voice was responsible for her affliction, as it often said it was sorry about what happened, but that it was necessary. There was also something else it said that used to terrify her. It said that it would, one day, come to kill her. To take her soul to the "Master", as the voice called it.

Apparently, the voice did not like to kill children, and thus gave her a final wish. She could ask for anything she wanted before she died, and the owner of the voice would make sure that it was done. The voice had given her from the time it had shown up, to the time it came to take her to think about what she wanted. The only thing off limits was the wish to continue living.

Kiyoko knew something was going to happen today. The voice hadn't spoken to her all day. She knew her way around the house, of course, but the voice was nice to talk to when Kinta and Yushi were away. But she was lonely today.

She suddenly heard the door open, then close, and the heavy thump of someone's boots coming towards her.

"Onii-chan?" the blind girl called out, thinking that it was her brother returning home.

"...No...It is I." a quiet, but masculine voice said as the boot thumps stopped just a few feet from the girl.

"...So, you've finally come to...take me?" Kiyoko gulped and began to sob. No matter how much she tried to resolve herself to this, she still didn't want to die.

"Do not cry, child...I will make this quick and painless, you have my word."

Kiyoko felt a large hand touch her shoulder. She placed her own tiny one on top of it, feeling a leather glove.

"Thank you...What is your name?" Kiyoko asked.

"Is that your final wish?" the person asked disbelievingly.

Kiyoko shook her head. "No, I just wanted to know."

The person sighed. "Very well...My name is Airen. Have you decided on your wish?"

Kiyoko shook her head. "There are two things I wish for more than anything else in the world...But one is just selfish of me, and the other...well, I don't know if it will even be possible for you."

The person chuckled. "I assure you, child, there is almost nothing that is beyond my abilities."

Kiyoko smiled. "Thank you. I still need some time to think."

"Very well. I shall give you five hours, just in case your last wish is to say goodbye to your family."

Kiyoko nodded. "Thank you, Airen-san."

The hand was taken from her shoulder and more boot thumps were heard. A chair on the other side of the table was pulled out and it creaked as someone sat down on it.

"..."

"..."

Neither Airen nor Kiyoko spoke a single word. Then, out of nowhere, Airen spoke.

"So...How are your siblings?" he asked.

"They're fine...They still don't know what happened to me, but only Yushi is still hung up on it. I keep telling her to just let it go, but she refuses to."

"I guess it is common for family members to worry about their own."

Kiyoko cocked her head to the side. "Do you have a family?"

"No...I was created, not born. The closest thing I have to a family is my superiors and subordinates. But, based on what I've seen from you and your family, mine would be considered very...dysfunctional."

Kiyoko laughed. "That's not really a family anyway."

"Well then...what is a family?"

Kiyoko smiled and proceeded to tell her new friend what a family was.

(Amegakure Ninja Academy)

Kinta had dropped Yushi off five minutes earlier and had gone to the village leader's office to see if there were any missions available. Yushi was currently running down the hallways at almost inhuman speed, screaming "OUTTATHEWAY!!!" repeatedly. People flattened themselves against walls and windows to avoid the human bullet that was flying down the halls, wondering just what the hell it was.

"Hamana Keiko?"

"Here."

"Hantai Yushi?" the instructor scanned the classroom, looking for a raised hand. "Hantai Yushi? Are you here?"

The door suddenly flew open and a young girl with long black hair slid to a stop in front of him and bowed. "Hantai Yushi, here!"

The instructed coughed and waved his hand to clear the dust she had kicked up. "Thank you for gracing us with your presence, Hantai-san." the Chuunin muttered sarcastically. "Find yourself a seat while I finish attendance."

Yushi nodded and ran to the back of the class, where she felt the most comfortable. She saw an open seat next to a boy that seemed to be incredibly bored, if the look on his face was anything to go by.

"Hi, I'm Yushi! Who're you?" Yushi greeted happily, hoping to make her first friend.

The boy looked up at her and grunted out a, "Hi.", then put his head down to do to sleep.

Yushi sweatdropped. "Hm, you're a lively one, aren't you?" her voice dripping with sarcasm, something she had picked up from her brother.

The boy just grunted again, the resumed his overly loud snoring.

Yushi sighed and sat down, eagerly awaiting the beginning of her kunoichi training.

(Five Hours Later)

Kinta was bounding from rooftop to rooftop, Yushi giggling on his back. She had pranked the instructor, like she had promised to do for her sister, just before he had come to pick her up. By the time the Chuunin figured out what had happened, she and Kinta were already halfway home.

Kinta sighed. "Will you ever take this seriously? Being a ninja isn't all fun and games, you know, not in the least."

This time Yushi sighed. "I know that, Onii-chan. I know I'm going to have to kill people, but you deal with it just fine, so why can't I?"

Kinta shook his head. "I kill people, but I don't just 'deal with it'. I regret my assassinations all the time, but I can't let my emotions interfere with my job."

"Why did you take a job that makes you do things that you regret?"

"I did it...because I couldn't protect mom and dad...I do it so I can protect you and Kiyoko."

"Then that's why I'll do it, too. I'll become the best kunoichi around so I can protect you and Nee-chan!" Yushi pumped her fist into the air.

Kinta had to laugh at that. "Then you'll have to stop pranking the instructors. The more they like you, the more willing they'll be to give you private lessons. That's something I learned a long time ago."

"Is that how you got the man with the weird eyes to train you?" Yushi asked.

"You mean Pein-sensei? No, he just came up to me one day and said he was going to train me. I don't even remember him giving me a choice in the matter. He just said, 'Get up and follow me.', and I did."

Yushi nodded. "Maybe he'll train me, do you think?"

Kinta rubbed his chin. "He might, if he sees you as worthy of his time. You have to have a reason and the drive to want to become stronger than anyone else for him to even spare a glance in your direction."

Yushi nodded to herself. "That settles it, I will find the man with the weird eyes and make him my sensei, too!"

Kinta chuckled at her enthusiasm, but silently hoped she could do just that. Then he wouldn't have to protect her and she could defend herself.

By the time they made it to their home, Yushi was half asleep, and Kinta was starting to get paranoid. He didn't know what it was, but he could feel the cold grip of fear wrapping around his heart, squeezing tighter and tighter the closer he got to the house. He picked up speed suddenly, waking Yushi.

"Onii-chan, what's going on?" Yushi clung tighter to her brother's Jounin vest.

"I don't know...and that's what worries me. Hang on!" Kinta shifted into high gear and took off like a human cannonball.

They reached their home in seconds, and Kinta nearly fell to his knees as the feeling increased twentyfold. He couldn't breathe, his sight was blurring, he felt numb to everything around him, and he could barely hear Yushi calling his name. Something was wrong...terribly wrong.

(Minutes Earlier)

"Your siblings have returned." Airen said.

Kiyoko sat down the cup of tea she had made for herself and Airen. "I have decided on my wish, Airen-san."

The sound of the chair being pulled back and the boot thumps that followed told Kiyoko that Airen had gotten up and had walked behind her.

"What is it, child?"

"I...I wish for you to watch over my family. Make sure they're happy, even without me. If need be, tell them that you were an angel that came to take me to heaven because Kami needed me for something."

Airen chuckled. "While I doubt they will believe that, I will do what I can. Are you ready?"

Kiyoko got out of her seat and sighed heavily. "I...I'm ready. You promise it won't hurt?"

"I always keep my word." Airen assured the girl.

The sound of a blade behind unsheathed caused the girl to flinch, and then stiffen as the point pricked the back of her neck.

The sound of the door opening caught their attention, as did Kinta's scream.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO HER?!?!" Kinta shouted, taking out two kunai and lunging at the dark figure that was behind his sister, holding a blade to the base of her skull.

Airen looked up and one eye flashed gold under his hood. "I'm sorry this has to happen, I truly am, but I cannot go against the orders of the Master. Again, I am sorry. I waited until you returned so you can all say goodbye. I will wait, but you will not interfere."

Both Yushi and Kinta found themselves unable to move, and could only sob as Kiyoko smiled sadly.

"Goodbye...Onii-chan...Nee-chan...We'll meet again, someday, so don't be sad. Airen-san promised that it wouldn't hurt."

The figure, apparently Airen, seemed to nod. "That is correct. I promised her that it would be swift and painless, and I always keep my word...Child, would you like to see your family one last time?"

Kiyoko gasped. "You...you can't do that?" she asked in wonder.

Airen chuckled. "Child, I told you there are very few things beyond my ability. Now hold still, this will not hurt." he placed his hand over the girl's eyes, which then glowed an eerie yellow. Airen took his hand off and nodded to himself. "Child...open your eyes."

Kiyoko hesitated for a second, and then slowly cracked open on eye, hissing at the brightness.

"Sorry." Airen snapped his fingers, which caused all the lights in the house to turn themselves off and the windows to be covered by mysterious shadows.

Kiyoko opened her eyes again, and wept tears of joy when she saw her siblings for the first time in three long years.

"Onii-chan...you need to shave. Nee-chan...you grew out your hair...I like it." Kiyoko smiled happily, tears flowing down her cheeks.

Kinta and Yushi sobbed, but smiled nonetheless. Even though this would end tragically, this was the happiest moment in Kiyoko's life. She could see again! Even if it was only for the next few seconds, she could see again. She had seen her family one last time, and she had said goodbye. She was at peace with her fate now.

"Goodbye...I'll tell Mom and Dad all about you...Remember, I'll always be with you." she closed her eyes, then took her final breath as the blade of a ninjatou severed her skull from her spine, killing her instantly and painlessly, just as Airen had promised.

Airen caught the body as it went limp, then wrapped it in the tablecloth and started to carry it out of the house. He looked down at Kinta and Yushi, who were on the ground crying and screaming at him. Begging, _demanding_ to know why he had taken their sister from them.

Airen stopped, tears flowing from his own eye. "I'm truly sorry...But I cannot go against the Master's orders. Please, do not hate me. The Master requested only her body, not her soul. I will make sure her soul passes on properly, the Master will not get his hands on it."

_"Is that so, Airen?"_ a sultry, smooth feminine voice cooed. A tall woman wearing something akin to an armored battle kimono seemed to come out of the wall in front of Airen.

"Itansha...Yes, that is so. I made this child a promise, and I intend to keep it."

The woman, Itansha, lifted a delicate eyebrow. "Hm? Why would you make such a promise to such a lowly creature as a human? Especially since you know you cannot keep it?"

Airen hissed. "I WILL keep my promise. Neither you, nor the Master himself will stop me!"

Itansha sighed, then, too fast for even Airen to follow, she had him pinned to the wall with two knives stuck in his shoulders.

"You were saying? There is a reason I am your superior, Airen. I didn't 'blow' my way to the top, as some of the other grunts put it. Now, hand over the child. There is a reason the Master wants it, though I can't fathom what use he would have for such a weak thing." she turned around and looked at Yushi and Kinta. "You left them alive? You are even more pathetic than I thought." she took out two more knives and slowly stalked towards the humans.

"NO!!! The Master didn't say to kill them! I was only told to kill the girl, you have neither right nor reason to take their lives, you foul whore!" Airen screamed.

Itansha stiffened, then turned back to Airen, stabbing him in the throat with a knife. "Quiet, grunt! You know, I was going to be merciful and make their deaths quick. But now that you've pissed me off, they're going to suffer, and you're going to watch." her knives morphed into twisted versions of themselves. The blades became serrated and dripped with a foul-smelling fluid that ate through the floor as it hit, revealing it to be acid.

She stalked over to Kinta, who was still paralyzed. "Hm, you even used that paralysis power of yours. Thank you for making my job even easier!" she smirked cruelly before grabbing Kinta's hand and slicing off two fingers, causing him to scream.

"ONII-CHAN!!!" Yushi screamed, somehow breaking free of the paralysis and running to her brother.

Kinta threw her to the side when he saw one of the woman's blades coming down. The blade missed Yushi by a hair's breadth, but cut deeply into Kinta's armored vest and into his flesh. He writhed and screamed in unimaginable agony as the acid began to eat into his chest, dissolving skin, muscle and bone. Eventually, even his organs were dissolved, leaving him little more than a hollowed out shell of a human being.

Itansha laughed at the look of horror and pain frozen on Kinta's face. She loved the looks humans died with, they were often a comical, to her, mix of pain, terror, and disbelief that one would never have in life.

Yushi saw everything. She saw the acid melt her brother from the outside in. She heard his agonized screams. She saw his body lose all color and grow still. She heard the acid still hissing as it ate completely through his body and through the floor, and into the basement.

Itansha looked at the little girl with a satisfied smirk plastered on her face. 'Wait for it...Wait for it..." she thought.

Yushi then broke down and unleashed an unearthly wail that shook the entire house. A wail not unlike that of a revenant returned from the grave. A scream of immense pain and sorrow all mixed into one gut-wrenching, blood-curdling sound that would send shivers up the spines of even the most fearless of beings.

But not Itansha, she reveled in the sound. It was like music to her ears. She could conduct her own symphony, if she wanted to, just with the sounds of these screams.

"Beautiful." Itansha closed her eyes and began to dance to the mournful howls of the little girl at her feet.

Airen's eyes widened. He knew this demon was a crazed psychopath, but he had no idea just how messed up she was until today. He hung his head. He had made promises to the girl, and he had already failed to keep most of them. Her soul would be taken and devoured by his Master. Her family was going to suffer in death because he had been careless and hadn't checked to see if he'd been followed, or the close the portal he had come through.

"I'm sorry....So...so sorry....Kiyoko." the knives slid from out of his shoulders and fell to the floor with light clangs. Airen himself fell to his knees and wept.

Itansha saw this and narrowed her eyes. Blurring out of sight for just a nanosecond, she was already next to Airen and had kicked him into a wall, leaving an indent and nearly sending him through the structure.

"Get up, you pathetic excuse for a demon! Get up so I can knock you back down and show you just how lowly you are!" Itansha mocked.

Airen did get up, but he wasn't going to take this beating, oh no. "You...You deplorable slut...You're nothing...but a monster...A bitch, a mangy mongrel meant to be put down....You kill for the sake of killing, not out of necessity...You and your kind...make me sick. I told that child that there were very few things beyond my abilities...and I will now show you why!" Airen exploded from his spot, and then proceeded to give Itansha the beating of her life.

Beaten and broken, Itansha couldn't stop Airen from picking her off the floor and slamming her into a wall.

"Any last words, bitch, before I end your accursed existence?"

"Y-Yeah....Just two..." her body suddenly came to life and wrapped its limbs around Airen. "Weak fool!" there was a bright flash, then Airen screamed in pain before dropping to the floor, dead.

Itansha stood up shakily. "For such a weakling...her sure did a number on me...I need to heal...I need..." she looked at Kiyoko's corpse. "FOOD!!!" she flung herself at the body and devoured it. The Master didn't require the _whole_ body for his plans, just her heart and brain.

Yushi looked on in horror as her sister's body was dismembered and eaten. Blood and organs splattered all over the place, all over her.

With the body consumed and the required organs salvaged, Itansha looked back at the only survivor of this massacre.

"So, Yushi, is that your name? Such a pretty name...Such a pretty little girl...Such pretty eyes."

Before Yushi even recognized what was going on, she was six feet off the ground, her neck held in Itansha's vice-like grip.

"I like your eyes, human...So I think I'll take them with me." she threw Yushi down and took out a knife. "Let's start with the right." without any hesitation at the look on Yushi's face, Itansha plunged her knife into the girl's right eye socket.

She grinned at the screams and the blood, moving the tip of the blade behind the eye, then plucking it out. Itansha then ate the eye, sighing happily when she felt it pop between her teeth. She closed her eyes, then opened them again, revealing her right eye had become the same stormy grey Yushi's had been.

"Now for the left." she grabbed Yushi's jaw and forced her left eye open so she could see the blade coming down.

Itansha's wrist was suddenly stopped by some invisible force and she screamed in pain as whatever it was forcefully pulled her power from her body.

She looked over and saw shadowy creature looming over her shoulder. One of its golden eyes glared at her, pure fury and hatred burning within the orb.

"Airen...You can't stop me!" Itansha snarled.

_"No, now that I have no body, I can't stop you. But she, however, can, with my help."_ the shadow growled before taking the shape of a serpentine dragon and flying into Yushi's vacant eye socket.

"What are you doing?...NO!!! You can't! Humans were not meant to wield that kind of power!" Itansha finally saw Airen's plan.

_"I can, and I have. I have given her the Eye of the Destroyer. One day, she will find you, and she will kill you. She will do what I couldn't, and destroy both you and YOUR Master. One day...we will both have our revenge upon you!"_ the dragon flew out of Yushi's new golden and black eye, glaring at Itansha. _"But, for now, I banish you back to the pit from which you came, disgusting harlot!"_ the dragon's eyes flashed, then Itansha screamed as she was encased in a burning pillar of flames.

"YOU WON'T STOP ME, AIREN NO KURO ENKOU!!! YOUR PLANS WILL FAIL, WHILE MINE AND THE MASTER'S WILL SUCCEED!!! MARK MY WORDS, AIREN, YOU WILL FAIL!!!" the pillar then sank back into the floor, taking Itansha with it, and leaving only a perfect circle of singed wood in its place.

Airen sank back into Yushi's eye, allowing it to close as she passed out. The eyepatch that Airen wore himself appeared on the girl's face, covering her right eye and keeping the power of the Eye of the Destroyer under control. He then screamed in rage as he skimmed through the child's memories and found false ones implanted by Itansha, and many missing ones. It seemed that Itansha had, indeed, gotten the last laugh. The only thing Yushi remembered was Itansha's name and her own.

(One Year Later)

Yushi walked down the hallways of the academy, much more subdued than her first time, almost seeming to move in slow motion compared to the world around her. Her ever-present eyepatch over her right eye, and her waist-length ponytail the only things that stood out about her, other than her persistent apathetic visage.

She never smiled anymore, and hadn't spoken a word to anyone in a year. She never spared anyone more than a cursory glance before moving on, like a ghost. Unnoticed, unloved and unwanted.

After her family had been killed, everyone thought that some demon had done it, and then had sealed itself inside of Yushi herself. The eyepatch was thought to be something to keep its power in check so no one would notice the demon, since any trained ninja could tell that the eyepatch had thousands upon thousands of near microscopic seals and other odd symbols on it.

The girl had also advanced greatly in the academy, leaving her peers behind and moving up two years ahead of them. She was often picked on by the older children, but all of that would stop today.

Yushi walked into her classroom and was immediately singled out.

"Hey, there's the freak now!" one boy shouted.

"Why do you keep coming back, Freak? Didn't get enough blood on you yet?" a girl mocked.

Yushi ignored them all, just like she did every day. But today it seemed that the kids were getting fed up with her attitude, or lack thereof.

"I guess the bitch thinks she's too good to talk to us. Is that it, Freak? You think you're better than us?!" Jinchuro, the self-proclaimed strongest student in the academy, walked up to Yushi and slammed his hands down on her desk.

Yushi didn't even look up from her book, figuring this to be just another one of the boy's temper tantrums.

Jinchuro growled and grabbed the front of Yushi's shirt, hauling her to her feet, making her drop the textbook.

"Listen here, bitch, I'm the best around here. You listen when I'm talking to you! When I want your attention, you give it to me, you got that?" When she didn't answer, the much larger boy punched her square in the jaw, sending her sliding across the floor.

Yushi tasted blood, but she didn't let that bother her. This had happened before...people had hit her many times in the past year. She thought he would just leave it at that, but no, Jinchuro wanted more.

Yushi had the air driven from her lungs as the boy buried his shin into her ribs, breaking two of them and fracturing another. The girl was sent rolling along the floor and crashed into several desks, causing the kids sitting in them to kick her out of anger.

Jinchuro walked up to Yushi, kicking her in the same spot again, making her hack up blood.

"Aw, what's the matter with the bitch? Not so good now, are ya'? Tell ya' what, I'll overlook your 'high and mighty' 'tude if you....bow down to me, right now." he and the other kids smirked when Yushi got into a kneeling position. "On both knees." the bully commanded.

Yushi just spared one look at the boy, revealing that her eyepatch had been ripped off. A black eye with a golden iris glared up at the boy. Jinchuro didn't even have time to register this fact before Yushi rocketed up and sent him through the ceiling with a vicious uppercut.

The class was stunned into silence, which was broken by someone clapping at the front of the class.

Everyone turned to see a tall orange-haired man dressed in a black cloak standing by the door, clapping and watching Yushi with his odd, grey-ringed eyes.

"You, come with me." he said, then turned and walked out of the classroom door.

Yushi, seeing that she wasn't being offered a choice in the matter, picked up her textbook, put her eyepatch back on, and walked out of the door after the man. She found him waiting around the corner for her. He grabbed her shoulder and they both disappeared in a puff of smoke.

They reappeared in some unknown clearing in the middle of a forest just outside of a cave.

"What is your name?" the man asked, staring down at the girl, testing her to see if she would show fear in his presence.

"My name is Hantai Yushi...You are the weird-eyed man." Yushi had some memory of the man, but she had never seen him before. She remembered someone telling her about him, but couldn't remember who.

The man cocked his head to the side slightly. 'So, she IS Kinta's sister...It would seem she truly doesn't remember him, or anything else about that day.' "...Child, take off your eyepatch." he ordered.

Yushi hesitated, then complied.

The orange-haired man lifted an eyebrow at the drastic jump in her chakra reserves and output. She went from mid-Genin to high Chuunin just by taking that thing off! That was something that he had never heard of before. Even Kakashi Hatake didn't get a boost in chakra with his special eye.

"Impressive, for one as young as yourself. Very well, you shall be my new student." there was no room for argument in his tone.

"Yes sir..."

"Pein...My name is Pein."

"Yes sir, Pein-sensei."

(Two Years Later)

Yushi stood in front of Pein and her other sensei, Konan. They had called her to them to discuss something of vital importance, as they had put it.

"Yushi...we will no longer be training you." Pein said in his matter-of-fact tone.

Yushi looked at them. "Why? Did I disappoint you somehow? Please, give me another chance, I'll-"

"No, Yushi, it is not your fault that we must stop. There are...certain people after us now...bad people...We have to go away to keep they away from us, and we can't bring you along. Please, understand our situation here." Konan explained, hoping that the child would understand. She had actually taken quite a liking to the girl. Though her attitude left much to be desired, her drive was something very, very few people had.

Even Pein liked her, though he'd sooner gouge his own eyes out than admit to that.

"Will...Will I ever see you again?" Yushi didn't want them to leave. They were the closest things she had to a mother and father that she could remember.

"...Maybe, but you won't know it." Pein said cryptically, and then placed his hand on Yushi's head. Her eye rolled back into her head and she fell unconscious.

"Did you really have to do that?" Konan asked, looking down at the girl with a semi-sad expression.

"Yes. You know as well as I do that the enemies we're sure to accumulate over the next few years will stop at nothing to get to us or at least figure out who we are. We can't have anyone remember us or our techniques. This girl was so close to us she knew our favorite foods! There was no way we could let her remember. Would you rather have me kill her?" Konan looked at him, shocked and horrified. "I didn't think so. Leave her a couple of scrolls and let's be on our way. There will be plenty of time to reforge relationships after all is said and done. I, and only I, can reverse the memory wipe, so all will work out as planned."

Konan produced ten scrolls and a hefty amount of money and placed them inside of the backpack Yushi always brought with her. She looked and Pein and nodded, then they both disappeared in the blink of an eye, no trace of their existence visible in the area. Only one unconscious little girl remained.

(Three Years Later)

It was nighttime in Rice Country. All was silent and calm, just the wind rustling the trees. But there was one area in which the silence was completely shattered by the sounds of death and battle.

Sparks flew, lighting up the battlefield in brief flashes, illuminating the corpses of the fallen.

Another man fell as he was run through by a long spear. The wielder of the weapon, a girl no older than twelve, wearing an eyepatch and dressed in customized ANBU armor for her stature and build, was impaling opponents left and right. But she had been at it for nearly half an hour, and it was taking its toll on her. Eventually she'd have to take the eyepatch off, but she didn't want to.

The longer she kept it on, the more power built up behind it. When the eyepatch was taken off, not only would her own power increase tenfold, there would be a massive shockwave of chakra that would draw way too much attention. Especially since an S-Ranked nuke-nin, Orochimaru, had been reported to have set up a hidden residence in the area.

'But I may have no other choice...There are still at least fifty of them, and they've probably got some more trying to flank me...This is bad.' Yushi thought.

_"Do not worry yourself so much, child."_ a quiet, but masculine, voice spoke within her mind.

'Airen...what should I do? There are too many, and I am getting weaker by the minute. I can't keep this up much longer, and their leader has yet to even show up. He's reported to be a Jounin level missing-nin, I don't think I could take him without removing the eyepatch.'

_"As I said before, do not worry yourself so much. If you are truly in need of help, then help shall arrive, in one form or another."_

'...Alright, I'll trust your judgment.'

Yushi sidestepped a lethal attack from the giant axe of the seven and a half foot monster of a man before her. He was Chougan, the Lieutenant of the bandit's ranks. The man who was in charge when the true leader wasn't around. He was Jounin level himself, but he was slower than a turtle stuck in tree sap compared to Yushi. That was the only way she was beating him, so far. He would actually kill a few of his own men by swinging his huge axe around in a wild fit of rage.

She had one hope of killing the man, but it was risky, since her entire strategy in this fight was to stay as far away from him as possible. She slid her hand down to the bottom ten inches of the spear handle and twisted it until she heard a small click.

Yushi then threw the spear at the giant with all her might. The deadly metal pike flew, whistling as it cleaved through the air towards its target.

The giant smirked and his hand shot out, grasping the spear and stopping it in mid-flight.

"Is that all you've got, little g-!" he was promptly cut off by a ninjatou lodging itself in his skull, putting him down permanently.

Yushi grabbed her spear and tossed it at another bandit, then killed one that had tried to stab her from behind with her sword. Now that the big dog had been taken out, the small fries would be easy pickings. The one-eyed girl set about killing the rest of the bandits, but was stopped cold by a brutal fist to the back of her head.

The blow sent Yushi tumbling, losing her spear and sword before smashing into a tree. Her head was spinning, and she was about to lose consciousness.

"Well, well, well, what have we here? A little girl that thinks she's all big and bad because she killed a couple of grunts and a giant with the IQ and speed of a retarded snail? Well, little bitch, how about I take you back to my tent and show you just what BIG and bad really means?" he reached for Yushi, but ended up reeling back in pain as something smashed into his face.

Yushi looked up and saw a boy, around her age, standing with his back to her.

(Six Years Prior (A.K.A. Time of the beginning of Yushi's story))

Jinsoku was a quiet boy living alone in Kumogakure. Sure, there were thousands upon thousands of other people in the city, but he was alone. His father had left him here, with his mother, at a young age, citing him to be too much of a burden to handle on his journey through the elemental countries. His mother quickly spurned and scorned him, leaving him on the streets to be destroyed by the mobs of cruel, hateful villagers.

But the Raikage himself saw potential in the young boy. He quickly gave the boy an underground place to live, twin ANBU guards who specialized in protection of individuals, and enrolled him for the brutal Ninja Academy courses at the tender age of six. Today was his first day. Jin took this all with much thanks, but only saw more pain from it.

With guidance, he was easily top of his class in grades, but he had refused any training for the practical courses. He knew that if he couldn't do this on his own, at least a bit, he'd have little or no hope of becoming a proper ninja. Little did he know, not many ninja were "proper" in the first place. No matter how matter the outcome of his ventures, he would never be a "proper" ninja.

**Two years later**

Jin, as he was nicknamed, was now age eight. Currently halfway through the ninja academy, and in a small, elite class, portioned off from the rest of the students with the exception of one class, basic physical workouts. This was the one class that the school had every student attend at the same time, though it was separated by years to avoid trouble. Jin however, was having problems today.

He stumbled in their game of Ninjaball, where the objective was to take the ball safely to their 'village', marked by a chalk circle on the opposite end of the field. Usually the fastest mover in the class, he was instantly given the ball for his team, and he took off, blazing across the field as the students attempted to catch up and use dummy kunai and shuriken to 'immobilize' or 'kill' him.

He stopped, and was quickly 'killed', the ball being snatched from his hands and raced down the field. A couple of the boys on his team paused for mere seconds to yell at him before chasing the other team. But it didn't seem to reach him.

'M-My head...it's...throbbing..' Jin quickly stumbled to the school wall, where his backpack lay. The instructors watched, but did not warn nor stop him. This would be their chance to get the child in trouble on proper grounds. Jin himself knew it was the last class of the day, and thus, it didn't matter if he left now. His grade would simply take a small marring. It wasn't worth putting himself in danger, he told himself, as he slung the pack over his shoulder, and used the school wall as a prop to get off of the grounds on his own two feet.

Today was one of the rare days in Kumogakure where the sun shone brightly, beating down upon its inhabitants. Jin cursed this day-ball eternally in his thoughts as he walked shakily home, the villagers careful about glaring at him, knowing full well what happened to the 'haters' that were caught by his guards.

Well, at this point, they were less 'haters' and more 'bloody smears on the sidewalk'.

'W...Why does it hurt so much..? My legs...feel so _weak_..' He moaned to himself as he finally reached the stairs to his underground home, fumbling down them, and unlocking his door. He flung his backpack onto the nearby couch, and collapsed onto the couch.

The two ANBU stood at the door, staring at the boy impassively as he sweat himself out, unconscious on the couch. "Do you think he'll be well?" Spoke one obviously feminine voice, leaning against the doorframe, her chest bound and green hair cut short to make her seem male under the armor and mask.

"I don't know. But we shouldn't report it until we know for sure what's going on." The other spoke, also feminine, her own chest bound as well, though long green hair lay flat against her back. Her twin nodded in response and they quickly closed his door, locked it, then proceeded to help themselves to Jin's fridge.

Jin opened his eyes. The throbbing had gone. All was well! Except for the fact that he had no idea where the _-fuck- _he was. It was...some kind of scarred wasteland. The thunderclouds and lightning seemed to be eternal in this land, their bolts shining off of...crystal spires? Jin walked forward hesitantly, gently brushing one of the numerous towering spires. Immediately, his vision was assaulted with last Thursday's test. He had aced that one with a 110. Thank goodness for bonus questions.

His hand jerked away. Were these...memories? He touched another one. A class on ambidextrosity and how useful it was for a ninja. They had practiced dual-wielding dummy kunai with slashing and stabbing motions, hands trading movements every thirty seconds. He hadn't gotten as used to it as the other students yet.

He pulled his hand away once more, but more calmly this time. They were memories. So this would mean this place was his mind? Unusual. Suddenly, he felt a tugging on his mind-self. Figuring he was about to explore some more anyway, he quickly wove through the spires, allowing himself to be effectively dragged along by an invisible force. This mysterious force seemed to release him as Jin was brought before a group of gigantic crystal spires that formed a massive cage. Inside, a giant slept. Easily the largest living thing Jin had ever seen, the beast took the form of a fox, though it looked like none that he'd ever seen before.

Jin began to stumble back. What was this monster doing in -his- mind? What the hell was going on!? The beast opened an eye lazily, revealing a huge purple orb with a slitted pupil gazing upon his form. Deep violet fur rippled as the beast yawned, revealing fangs larger than Jin's entire body that seemed almost polished, possessing a sheen rivaling that of the enormous crystals that kept the creature at bay.

As the beast's maw closed again, it began to speak. **"So, you've come."** Jin, unsure, nodded slowly. **"What are you, lame? A cripple? Speak up. Tell me your name."** Jin shivered, then stood tall...Well, as tall as an eight year old could get anyway, compared to a monster of this magnitude.

Taking strength from the fact that it was trapped within the cage, he spoke. "My name is Jinsoku...Jinsoku Uzumaki."

The beast raised an eyebrow, and then nodded. **"A fair name."** The beast stood and its tails began to fan out behind it.

Jin counted quickly. 'One. Two. Four. Eight. Ten. Eleven?'

**"I am the Juuichibi no Kitsune, one of the Greater Bijuu, and, I suppose now, an Ex-Realm Binder. Don't ask, you couldn't hope to comprehend the answer. You are Jinsoku Uzumaki...My jailor. I am, by no means, an evil being. Nor am I what one would call 'good'. I do not like you, nor do I hate you. In fact, I don't care about you one way or another. Your future choices and actions will decide me eventual disposition towards you. However, at this time, that matters not." **The demon paused, as if waiting for the human to speak. When Jin remained silent, the Juuichibi continued.** "What matters now is your knowledge of my presence here. Should you ask, I may, or may not, grant you a portion of my power, or perhaps even my wisdom...Of course, this depends on the situation and whether you catch me in a good mood...which I doubt will be often."**

"Wha-" Jin began, but was swiftly cutoff by the kitsune.

**"Your questions will have to wait. What I have told you now is all I will tell you at this time. Now, begone, there is much that must be done and, for once, time is not on my side."**

Jin gaped. This...This was a Bijuu? One of the evil demons known to ravage the lands, killing all without hesitation or mercy?

The beast, sensing his fear and trepidation, snarled. **"You doubt my words!?"** The demon's eyes flashed with an unholy rage for a fraction of a second.

And then it was all over. The world seemed to end for Jin. There was only death..._his_ death...It flowed over him, penetrating his every cell, every pore, every molecule within him. Then, as quickly as it had come, it ended. Jin found himself curled into a painful ball, sobbing.

The beast's eyes flashed again, this time expressing pity and remorse. **'I used too much intent...I may have broken him...'** Getting himself as close to the boy as possible, the demon whispered quietly, **"Boy..? Jin? Are you well?"**

Jin slowly began to uncurl, imaginary cramped muscles stretching as though they were real, until he was finally on all fours on the ground. Slowly, shakily, he pushed himself up, arms shaking and legs threatening to collapse at any second. When he finally had it, he turned to look at the Juuichibi no Kitsune with blank eyes. The fox eyed cautiously, clearly concerned.

Finally, Jin spoke. "You're an -asshole-, y'know that?"

The kitsune twitched, spasmed, then collapsed onto its side, its yips and barks mimicking insane laughter.

**"Tha...AHAAHA...that boy....HAHA....just called me an -ASSHOLE-! AHHAHAHAHAAaaa..."** He finally relaxed, the grin on his maw almost fearsome. **"You..hah...amuse me boy...Go now. We shall speak later."**

Jin nodded, turned, and took a step away. Then he turned right back around. He raised a hand, with one index finger up, perplexing the fox.

**"What?"** The Greater Bijuu cocked its head to the side a bit.

Jin took a breath, as if about to speak the truth of the universe. "Which way is out again?"

The fox deadpanned, one of its tails jerking upward. Jin sadly, made the mistake of looking up. A lightning bolt crashed into his face, and over his body.

When the flash faded, he was gone, and the fox lay down once more. **"This'll be one hell of a ride..."**

Jin awoke to find two ANBU on both sides of him, both sporting green hair and grey armor. The second he began to uncurl from the ball he was in on his couch, their heads snapped towards him.

"You alright, kid?" One spoke, her mask painted as if she were a bat.

Jin nodded, then turned to look at the other one, who had moved to the loveseat near the window to give him space. His eyes tightened as he noticed she was eating something. Slowly, he stood and stretched, unassumingly. And then he leapt, tackling the eating ANBU straight out of the window, swinging around her lithe body, and curling his elbow around her neck, so when they landed in the ditch outside next to his stairs, he was choking the life out of her.

He screamed one thing, and one thing alone, "GIVE ME BACK MY GODDAMN POCKY, YOU WHORING, FUCKFACE, ASS-SLUT SON OF A BIIIITCH!!"

The other ANBU only stared in awe as the blue-eyed child attempted to murder her twin, who, upon being choked, had clutched the pocky to her chest with one hand, and was actually _-failing- _to fight off the furious eight year old with the other. The second her face turned blue, the currently unoccupied twin sent out a piercing ANBU whistle call, and leaped into the fray, attempting to help her sister.

Two minutes and roughly eight ANBU later, they had finally wrestled the devil-possessed child off of the woman, and calmed him with offers and bribes totaling up to fifty times the three packs of pocky the woman had eaten. Of course, it only lasted two minutes because the foolish, oxygen-deprived ANBU had -mentioned- that she ate another two packs, leading to another flying assault. Thus, the ANBU learned NEVER to touch Jinsoku's pocky. There were easier ways to commit suicide.

Afterwards, Jin had reported to the ANBU his 'dream'. They shared a quick look before everyone grabbed the poor boy and attempted a Shunshin. Sadly, they were all trying to Shunshin a different way, though all to the same destination. This would prove a problem, should it succeed. Sure, he'd end up at the Raikage's office, but he'd end up in well, ten different pieces. That wouldn't be fun.

Juuichibi, sensing what was about to happen, pulsed his chakra. The ANBU felt it, but they couldn't do a damn thing about it, as they were all blown into different walls of the ditch outside his home, one of them even flying through the broken window, into his home, and into the fridge.

Jin stared. "Right then. I'll uh...just go report this to the Raikage then..." He slowly tiptoed out the ditch, and walked about twenty feet down the road to the Raikage's tower. Entering silently, he nodded to the secretary, who reciprocated the gesture impassively and buzzed him in.

The Raikage disliked paperwork. He really did. Some would insist it happened to be what made him so...stormy. He was about to lose it. He could feel it...One more paper, and he'd blow everything on his desk to dust...His head snapped up as the door opened, his pen flying at deadly speeds towards the intruder's head.

Jin, having foreseen this, entered crawling on the ground, and stared at the pen lodged where his head would be. "Nice aim, Raikage-sama."

The man looked down to the ground, and raised an eyebrow, nodding sharply. "Jinsoku. Why are you here?"

The boy stood, dusting himself off before speaking. "Well, uh, sir, my ANBU guards, along with about eight others, are out cold in the ditch outside my house...And I had a very odd....dream, beforehand."

The fairly aged man tensed, frowning. "What kind of dream?"

Jin stood stiffly, telling him the entire dream, save for what the fox said to him, fibbing that a bit so as not to shatter his fragile beliefs on the Bijuu.

The most powerful shinobi in Kumogakure leaned back in his chair and nodded to himself. "I was waiting for this to happen."

Jin stared, gobsmacked, at the Kage. 'He KNEW!?' "You KNEW!?"

The man smirked at him. "Yes, I diiid." 'Damn I feel smooth.' He flicked a card at the boy. "Head to that room below this building immediately. Code's on the card."

Jin, understandably stunned, could only nod. The Raikage was sending him to the Kumo ANBU HQ? Why!? He had seen other ANBU report to the door, but had never been able to get the code they used to get in. He walked out, down the stairs and to a very innocent-looking door, tracing the number code on the card via the symbols carved into the door. The second he finished tracing the last one, the door slid open and some kind of vacuum drew him in quickly as the door closed itself behind him.

He quickly hustled down the hallways, keeping his head down from the inquiring looks behind the masks of the ANBU around him. Finding the door he was sent to, he lifted his hand to knock, but the door snapped open before he could.

"You Jin?" The tall, intimidating man behind the door inquired.

Jin nodded quickly.

"Welcome to Hell." The man grinned maliciously and dragged the boy in. He shut and locked the door, then gave a downright sinister chuckle before all went dark...

**Four Years Later**

Jin stood, in a dark blue sleeveless hoodie, a black short-sleeved t-shirt, baggy camo cargos, and the usual ninja sandals, staring down at Kumo's main gate through the darkness of the night. He had finished his grueling training with the ANBU. Then he had gone back to the academy to make it all official. He was a genin now. He had learned techniques, and made techniques. He had earned the respect of the ANBU...But the stares still came...The thinly veiled hate.

During his training, Jin often wondered why ANBU, of all people, would go through the effort of training him. But now he knew. He knew they were grooming him to be a weapon. And he hated it.

Their smiles, their reassurances...were all just another tool for duty. As they had taught him to use his for his duty. They were afraid of him, just as much as the others.

To be feared was fine. As long as it was of his own agenda. When he had to walk down the streets, with people cowering at him because of -someone else-? Unacceptable.

Jin sighed, the katana on his side shaking. It was a present from the Raikage, forged by the least taken route due to his rejection of three years worth of birthday presents for it.

A smithy had taken his best metals, meant for a quick, but light katana, to the top of the highest mountains near Kumo, where lightning from the eternal storm struck often. He had used the bolts as his flames, a risky maneuver, but known to produce beautiful, especially dangerous weapons. He had folded the blade many times over, until the katana was as sharp as could be without being fragile. It had also been equipped with a chakra injection system by the boy himself, so that he could clean the blade easily with a flare of raw chakra, or turn it into an even deadlier weapon with two lightning affinities within him.

He shook his head again. This was not the time to have flashbacks. 'I should get going.' But he couldn't.

He needed a bit more time. This is where he had lived for most of his young life. He had to at least pay the land homage with his memories, though definitely not the people. He knew he had to escape, no matter what, because of them.

He had spoken to the beast within him, and it had agreed.

**"You would not have reached your full potential here anyway. They are too close-minded, too obsessed with you relying on me to become stronger. And even worse, the egotistical fools think THEY know how to best channel and control MY power. The time is now. We leave tonight, under the cover of darkness."**

These words rang through his mind, along with his own thoughts. He hated that they knew more about him than he did, but wouldn't tell. He hated that they pressed him harder and harder, until they found his breaking point...And then tested that, trying to push him beyond his own limits, thus forcing him to rely on the demon just to survive. Jin tired of it, well and truly fed up with all of it.

He shook his head, his silver hair now slicked back on the top and sides, where it led to quill-like spikes in back. There was nothing left here for him. 'This is it. I'm finally going. I'm going to find you, dad...And I'm going to kick your ass for leaving me here!' He drew the headband that signified his place as a Kumo ninja, slashed the symbol through with a kunai, dropped both, and ran, sprinting through the main gate at full speed. As he ran, he felt as though a tremendous weight had been lifted. He was leaving it all behind. The pain, the hatred, the lies; everything was being left in the dust. He had survived his stay in Hell. And now...He was free.

**Three Days Later**

Jinsoku was -hungry-. He couldn't seem to find any game in this area of the Land of Lightning, and his supply was running low. He'd begun to ration it, but he was still going to run out in a day, maybe two. And now his hunger was showing him hallucinations. A man...with red hair...and a cross-shaped scar on his cheek beckoned to him. He followed. One. Two. Three steps. And he was out cold on the flo or. The man sighed. The boy would take a lot of work. But his style would be passed on to him, come hell or high water. At the moment, it seemed like it'd be both.

**Three Months Later**

Jin sighed, wandering in Rice Country was becoming -tame- of all things. Sure, that snake freak, Orochimaru, had cropped up in some of the more shady circles, but he had deftly decided that would be a bad idea, and continued on.

He missed the man who he'd thought to be a mirage. 'Maybe one day, I'll meet Sensei again..'

The man had taught him many things, and he held those things near and dear. Especially since they were very combat-handy. As he began to reminisce about their time together, the sounds of battle reached his ears, breaking the monotony of the night. He set himself low and shot off, barely a blur to the untrained eye, allowing his ears, not his eyes, to guide him through the darkness.

His ears quickly lead him to the site of a massive battle, one girl against what appeared to be an entire regiment of bandits. He watched, as the girl fought valiantly, even managing to silence one of the largest of the bandits with her surprising weapon. Maybe he could learn from this girl also, though she looked to be his age! And then he saw it.

The punch to the back of her head. That was low, though well within the shinobi standard. But this man was threatening to rape her? That was too far. Smoothing his body low along the ground, palms flat, one leg back, he tightened his knees. Setting himself, his palms pushed hard, down and back, launching him forward, tensed legs unfolding to hold his speed along the ground as he closed the distance.

Entering the clearing, he slammed his palms against the ground once more, down and to the side, lifting himself off the ground, and twisting, whipping his foot across the man's nose, and landing low, with one leg extended, sliding along the ground.

A quick roll to the side set him in front of the girl, crouched low, watching the crowd of men, as his fingers subtly undid the latches on his katana, meant to hold it in the sheath.

'I shouldn't need it for this, But it never hurts.' He smirked at the man, who clutched his nose in agony. 'Unless it's the enemy that is.'

The man then stood, releasing his now bloodied nose, before laughing brashly. "HAH! Nice shot, you snot-nosed punk. Now run home to mommy before I have to rip you a new one!"

Jin's eyes twinkled with amusement as he twitched an eyebrow upwards. "I believe that's my line, pencildick."

The man, having had enough of this, shot forward, slamming his fist into the boy's gut, easily sending him through two trees nearby. As Jin tumbled to a stop, the man was already there, and proceeded to punt him back to the clearing.

The man strode over cockily, standing at the edge of the clearing. "Get up so I can beat you down s'more!" He then did a double-take when he noticed that the boy was no longer laying on the ground. He then felt an odd pressure on the base of his spine.

"Eat it, bitch." One chakra-enhanced palm thrust and the man was sent flying into the center of the clearing. Jin took a few steps forward again, to stand in front of the one-eyed girl as the leader of the bandits stood.

"You little SHIT!" He slid a blade smoothly from his back, a run-of-the-mill katana, and shot at the boy once more.

Jin simply pulled the sword from his left side, sheath and all, with his left hand and blocked the powerful overhead strike. The ground shattered beneath the boy's feet, a testament to the sheer power of the attack, though not once did Jin's knees buckle.

With blinding speed, the boy went low, sweeping the man's feet from under him and sliding smoothly into a battojutsu stance. Exactly as the man fell in front of his lowered form, he drew his blade, quick as a flash, from its sheath, using the base of the hilt to launch the man once more, before sliding the blade cleanly back in. Said bandit leader managed to catch himself with a roll, quickly retaliating with a barrage of kunai. Jin twitch-leaned to the side, the blades of death slicing past him...until he remembered what was behind him.

'The girl!' He whirled about, and kicked off, shooting low, under, ahead of the kunai, before pushing up, catching the blades in the flesh of his back.

The man laughed cruelly. "Isn't that sweet? The little prince wants to protect his giiiirlfriiiend." The bandits, following mob mentality, quickly added their snickers to the bunch. The man then held up his hand, calling for silence. "Well, let's give him something to protect her -from-!" The leader's hands folded into handseal after handseal, until he grinned, the earth beginning to rumble.

Not too far underground, the hardest metals and minerals began to join together and move in unison, like a river of dirt and stone. Moments after, the ground in front of the man split, a multi-colored earthen dragon making itself known.

Jin and the dragon had a small staredown, which he ended by speaking. "Oh, you've -got- to be shitting me."

The dragon seemed to take these words as a cue, and launched itself at the boy. It collided, and a huge plume of dust and debris erupted from the point of impact, obscuring the results.

The man, sure of his technique's success, laughed cockily and turned to his men. "And that's how you take care of a wannabe ninja. Go grab the girl so I can make her a -real- woman...If she's still intact."

A voice cut the air, originating from the smoke, sounding deep, gritty, demonic and, most of all, annoyed. "Now you've gone and done it." The man spun about, the clearing smoke revealing Jin settled into a battojutsu stance once more.

Everything seemed to slow down for Jin, as he recalled his training. 'Step once, drawing the blade. Initial acceleration.' His body slammed a foot into the ground, shooting towards the man, whose features now screamed of fear, at alarming speeds.

Jin's hand pulled at the blade in the same moment, pulling it from the sheath at speeds exceeding those the rest of his body was traveling at. 'Step twice. Additional acceleration and weight for the blade.' Once more, his body obeyed, the second foot propelling him dead in front of the man, the blade already out of its sheath and traveling the path of a lethal arc that would carry it to its latest victim.

It was a blink of motion; a single twitch. It was all the bandit leader managed. His sword already in hand, he lifted it...then blinding pain was all he felt. The darkness was closing in. He was dying...he didn't want to die...not yet...But the reaper's call was too loud to ignore now...

The bandits nearest their leader collapsed in unabated horror. Their -former- leader was now standing before the boy, his sword slightly raised, seemingly paralyzed by the boy's strike. It was so fast...the bandits had never seen anything like it, even though they hadn't actually -seen- anything. They knew he was dead, split so cleanly, so quickly, that blood had yet to spray. The boy that had so mercilessly slaughtered their leader hopped back as the man began to slide apart, blood spattering the closest bandits, causing them to scream and flee with their cohorts, never to return.

Jin sighed, his body slumping, tension rolling off of him. Plucking the kunai from his back with a small hiss, he turned to the girl to check on her, he slapping a goofy grin complete with closed eyes on his face. "Hey, you alright back there?" After a good minute of waiting for a response, he opened an eye to find her gone. 'She...JUST LEFT ME HERE!? Why that little...!' Leaping onto the nearest tree, he took off, searching for his ward.

Minutes later, Yushi lay against a tree, a couple yards away, sighing as she tended to her wounds. 'Can't believe I needed saving from a goon like that.' A rustling bush quickly set her on guard, a hand moving, in the blink of an eye, to grasp her spear.

Suddenly, Jin's head poked out from said bush. "Thought you could pull a fast one on me, eh?"

Yushi frowned at the young man, hand still tight on her spear. "Leave. Now. I didn't need your help then, and I certainly don't need anything from you now."

Jin shook his head, entering the very small clearing fully. "Naaah."

"It wasn't a request." Yushi snarled.

"Since when do rescuers take orders from rescuees?" Jin laughed.

"I did NOT need to be rescued."

"Yeah, so that guy punching you in the back of the head was all part of your maaaaster plaaan, was it?"

"Shut up."

Jin wandered closer to her as he spoke, prompting Yushi to stand up, irritation obvious in her eye. "Oh, and him about to drag you into his tent and do terrible things to you was obviously there too huh-"

WHAP!

Jin held his cheek, gawping at Yushi who was full-out glaring at him by now. "Did you just smack me? WITH YOUR PONYTAIL!?"

WHAP!

Yushi smirked. "Does that answer your question?"

"Itaaai! You didn't need to hit so hard! I did save you after all..."

Yushi, being fed up with his talking, jabbed her spear at him, forcing him to hop back. "Since you are ignoring my words and insisting that I needed your help, I guess I have to show you exactly why I don't need assistance from the likes of you."

Jin grinned suddenly, as if he'd never been smacked, detaching his katana from his belt and setting it on the ground. "I won't need this, then..."

"You're going regret putting your weapon down!" with that, Yushi charged.

* * *

**AN: **And thus ends the prologue for No Rest for the Innocent. Tell me what you think! The show will go on, and reviews will help me decide where to take it! Flames: Sure. I'm always in the mood for smores. Praise: Always good! But please, try to avoid the one word reviews. Tell me what you think, not just that it's nice or cool. I'll be putting (AT THE LEAST) a weeks delay between chapter posts, maybe more depending on the chapter. Good things will come in time!


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